It is known to package large quantities of hamburger patties by automation. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,514,434 issued Apr. 30, 1985 to Goldberger et al. for MEAT PATTY AND PROCESS FOR FORMING THE SAME. To applicant's knowledge, however, the automated production of large quantities of cooked and frozen barbecue patties has not been knoWn prior to applicant's invention of the production process and resulting product described and claimed herein.
The United States Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A.) requires that all meat sold or labeled as "barbecue" be cooked enough to lose at least thirty percent (30%) of its green or original weight. Meat that is not cooked enough to lose at least 30% of its green weight, but is cooked and mixed with a sauce, is called "BBQ", according to the U.S.D.A.
The distinction between "barbecue" and "BBQ" is recognized, but for the purpose of describing the invention the term "barbecue meat" is used herein to refer to any meat (pork, beef, poultry, or a mixture thereof) that is cooked and mixed with a sauce by automation before being sold. The term "barbecue patty" refers herein to any meat (pork, beef, poultry, or a mixture thereof) that is cooked, mixed with a sauce, and formed into a patty before being sold.
Currently, the automated production of cooked and frozen barbecue meat results in the cooked meat being packed in bulk within one to five pound containers and frozen in a centrally located production plant.
The frozen meat is shipped to the point of use, which may be a sandwich distributor, fast food outlet, delicatessen, cafeteria, restaurant, or grocery store. There, the entire one to five pounds is thawed and put into a warming pan and then portioned with a spoon onto plates or into sandwiches. The balance that is not served is either thrown out or refrigerated to be served another time.
The conventional practice of thawing one to five pounds of frozen barbecue meat, warming it, spooning out portions of it, and throwing out or refrigerating the unused portion to be served later is unsatisfactory in many establishments where the control of portions, inventory, and Waste is highly important.
These desirable advantages can be achieved by utilizing the process of this invention to package the barbecue meat in patties of a uniform selected weight for individual servings. When using the patty, the maximum number of servings per pound of meat can be achieved by eliminating over-portioning, eliminating waste, and eliminating or reducing employee theft.